The Map
by sodchick
Summary: Lily is suffering from a severe case of denial, when she finds herself with the Marauders' Map in her hands, her world gets turned upside down.
1. Insentive

**A/N- So, this little fic is made in spite of a few of my so called friends who happen to write stuff about Lily and Snape. Aka the worst ship in all of infinity. So I figured making a counter-fanfiction one was the best way to go about.**

**Note: this is only a teaser bit. To see if I have any interested readers.**

**Disclaimer: don't own any of the characters – just incase you were wondering whether or not I was JKR in the flesh.**

A beam of pale sunlight stretched through the girls' dorm room, illuminating the odd piece of furniture, or garment of clothing. It led directly to where Lily Evans lay, now wide awake. This was due to the fact that it was directed to her face, or more specifically her florescent eyes. Lily yawned widely, not worrying about waking her dorm mates, most of them were already stirring. She sat up slowly, using her hands for support and all of the while blinking madly, attempting to clear her vision. Running her slender fingers through her long locks of Scarlet hair, Lily took a deep, gradual breath and racked her mind for any thoughts of events planned for the day.

It was Saturday, brilliant –that meant she'd have the whole day to do whatever she liked, though Lily hadn't the faintest idea how she was going to waste away so many hours, having done her homework in advance. She pondered this for a fair while, before some type of noisy commotion brought her back to reality. Lazing about in bed certainly wasn't the way Lily wanted to spend her free time. Being some what of a morning person, she was capable of making herself presentable in a minimal period of time. It was routine for her, so the entire process of getting ready took just over a quarter of an hour.

Before she knew it Lily was proceeding to the great hall for what she hoped would be an enjoyable breakfast. She made her debut to the Gryffindor table discreetly, not wanting to stop for any chit-chat amongst the way. Lily sat down at the seat that she found most convenient. Some would refer to this seat as the one which put as much space as possible between her and James. After piling a fair stack of toast on her plate Lily filled her goblet carefully with pumpkin juice and took sip, not the slightest bit aware of what horror would bestow her.

"Oi, Evans!"

Lily gave a frantic glance down the table, her emerald green eyes sparkled vividly as they came in contact with the source of the sudden outburst: James Potter. She was suddenly content with the sparse quantity of food she'd consumed. Lily abandoned her heaping plate quickly and left the great hall rather hastily. Recently she'd been avoiding James like the plague, due to the fact that he'd been pursuing her like crazy. She'd gone so far as to memorize his schedule, learn where he preferred to sit in every class they shared and even taken precaution in which corridors she traveled down; she knew which ones he tended to use frequently.

Yes, Lily'd obtained information which the various members of Sirius' fan club would have killed to learn. Seeing as he and James were nearly inseparable.

But Lily preferred to keep the data to herself, never daring to reveal it to anybody. She'd been collecting it for months and had even become slightly obsessive about the matter. She'd do so in secrecy, often listening in on others conversations absently to see if she speaker knew anything astounding about the marauder. Originally she'd kept notes in her diary which she'd refer to whenever necessary, but she soon grew out of the habit and took to relying on her own memory which proved to be gratifying whenever it came to a certain Potter.

Lily had to constantly remind herself of the reason why she had gone through so much trouble as to seek such information about James. She loathed him. She was avoiding him. That was the solitary reason, she was attempting to keep him away –but then why was he currently the only subject which circled through Lily's mind? It was really quite simple: Lily Evans was suffering from a severe case of denial.

---

"Arrogant… so conceited… can't mind his own business."

Lily grumbled throughout her entire stay at the Library, never ceasing to mutter on about some unworthy trait of James or another. After finding both the common room and dorm deserted Lily's taken refuge in the only other place which was of some comfort to her. Though at the moment poring over a few editions of "Polyjuice Potion: true accounts of the mayhem" wasn't clearing her mind. She was quite distracted from the world around her so she nearly sprang to her feet when the librarian claimed that her absentminded calls of "typical" and "stupid" were quite rude, and that it would be very considerate if Lily dear would please keep the volume down. Lily, -being the prefect she was- obliged and kept her lips sealed for the remainder of her visit.

Her visit, however, was cut short thanks to the mass of giggling second years who located themselves in such a way that Lily would hear every shriek and squeal clearly. The girls completely disregarded Mme Pince's request for silence and continued twittering. None of their gossip contained James so Lily snapped her book shut defensively, and without bothering to return it to the proper shelf she exited the library deciding that a bit of fresh air might do her some good.

--

Lily had sprawled out by the edge of the Black Lake, gazing into its mysterious depths and all of the while pondering James' intentions. She was laying on her front side, her feet swung round in the air and she picked at a few stray pieces of grass. The blaring sun reflected a top Lily's hair, it shone fiercely and might've given those who sat near her the desire to conjure up a pair of sunglasses. As Lily tore a particularly wide blade into miniscule slivers a tall figure approached her, brandishing something that resembled a clothbound book.

"Evans," it was James.

Lily groaned in exasperated tone and discarded the grass she was clutching, wishing that she was able to apparate. It was clear that Lily wasn't going to get out of this one too easily; she certainly couldn't flat out ignore him. Seeing as confrontation was necessary, she rolled over and rose to her feet, surprised at her own agility.

"What?" she asked him expectantly, wiping her hands off on her jeans, not daring to look James in the eye. His hazel irises were far too mesmerising. Instead, Lily focused on the small object which was carelessly grasped in his right hand: a diary. Lily recognised this diary as the very one she'd been recording the day's events in the previous night. The one she'd foolishly left unattended in her haste to exit the common room. Her diary.

He had her diary.

Lily stared dumbfounded at it, pointing in dismay. She opened her mouth as if to comment, but no words came from her parted lips.

"I found this night in the common room, and it appears to be yours," James gestured to the midnight blue "LE" which was embossed in the black spine of her diary. "So here." He extended his arm and offered the book to Lily, bearing a friendly smile. Lily tried to ignore the unwelcome pink hue which was creeping across the bridge of her nose and snatched the book reproachfully. She flipped through the diary briskly, pausing at random intervals as if she were checking to see if the book was besmirched in any way. It proved to be in tact but she wasn't content with the unscathed appearance, looks could be very deceiving.

"You… did you – read it?" Lily inquired in a harsh tone, though there was a nearly inaudible tremble of anxiety mixed in.

"Not a word." His answer was simple. Dignified, definite, brief – he was sure of himself. As much as Lily would've liked to take James for his word, she knew he couldn't be trusted.

"How can you expect me to believe you?"

"I _am _telling the truth."

"But how do I know tha-?"

"I'm not lying to you, Evans." He was getting defensive. Though Lily'd never been much good at deciphering honesty, James seemed to be letting off a sincere vibe. Her brain was throbbing; she wanted this conversation to end. "I have homework to do." And with that, Lily stormed off towards the castle, ignoring James cries of "wait - _Ev_ans!"

She spent the remainder of the day in the girls' dorm room, enveloped in thought with the odd emotional mood swings. She didn't record a single word of her wonders in her diary.

**A/N- I wasn't sure how the last library bit affected the flow of the story, but I kept it in there anyways. At first it progressed into a different follow up in the plot but I booted the original idea – thus: the chapter. Tell me what you thought, constructive criticism is a go.**

**And again, pretty please review.**

** (review responses)**

**Fanficky-chicky: no. no it's not. It's also not funny to besmirch my locker with such revolting ships. Snily sucks. (by the way, I included the word 'besmirch' in this chappie, in your honour of course.)**

**Sweet southerner: I'm glad you're so enthusiastic about the story. Don't fear, I'll continue updating as long as others continue reviewing.**

**Puppy dog eyes jr: the old name seriously had to go. I'm afraid this chapter might be short as well, I prefer to write in small portions. I am not snily. Stop telling people to call me snily. Stop shipping snily. **

**Harrys-chika: ha. No. just, no. **

**Shivering smile: -high five- this is an ultimately cool story. 'cept I'm not one hundred percent sure of a definite plot line. --**

**Hp-lover-4-ever: I hope this counts as 'exeemly' soon. Sorry, but I love typos. Collect the little buggers, I do. Like ebate.**

**Marauders-rule: yay for reviews, I guess I'vve have to ask politely again this chapter.**

**Anaela loves who: interesting. Veeeeeeeeeeery interesting.**

**And I wasn't sure who the librarian would be so….. I just used pince.**


	2. The Map

**A/N- 'lo all. I feel like rambling on a bit, so I shall. Our old computer which used to reside in the basement has now been moved to my room. –much rejoice- Though it's not connected to the internet, it will allow me to type up chapters a hell of a lot quicker. I warn any lemon seekers that one condition of the computer in my room was no writing porn. xD So tragic. (No, I wouldn't have written it to start with personally I think it is a tad awkward.) I hope that this chapter is long enough for all of you anti-fluff people out there.**

**Review responses for the public:**

**Sweet southerner: Of course Lily has no excuse. She's such a silly girl XD I dunno. But thanks for the review **

**Puppy dog eyes jr: heh. You were second. Love it when you're wrong. Poor bitchy 'Licia. And this chapter is longer so… yeah.**

**Shivering smile: yay for the sixth sense, though that was a terrifying movie. Kept me up for eons.**

**Ridiculous: okie-dokie.**

**Fanficky-chicky: write snily and die –evil glare-. (see alicia's reply for details about the length of the fic) **

**marauders-rule: Of course Lily has to come out of denial. It's the entire point of the story… well sorta anyways.**

The harsh monotone outburst of Lily's alarm still rang through her mind mockingly as she brushed her teeth obediently; it was as though the inanimate object was taunting her. Lily certainly could be a morning person, on the odd occasion she would rise before dawn and watch the sun peek over the horizon. Lily could get so lost in thought while gazing at the mystical array of colours which seemed to spread out like paint across the ultimate canvas. Yet, this was not one of those mornings. Her alarm had gone off automatically, and been the cause of Lily's some-what delayed waking. She had stayed up into the wee hours of the night, not obtaining a win k of sleep before 2am due to the constant circulation of thoughts in her mind.

After a few extra vigorous scrubs directed to her incisors Lily spat the minty contents of her mouth into the sink and briefly ran her toothbrush under the stream of water flowing from a brass faucet. After double checking that her diary was tucked away safely in her locked trunk Lily fled down the steps to the deserted common room with out bothering to approve her reflection in a mirror. The first bell hadn't yet gone off but it was clear that Lily wasn't going to be so privileged as to enjoy the luxury of breakfast. She didn't hesitate as she moved gracefully towards the portrait hole. That was, until something caught her eye.

A decrepit piece of parchment lay unattended, peeking out from under a scarlet cushioned arm chair, not too far from the fire from the fireplace. Under normal circumstances Lily would've assumed it to be a bit of rubbish which hadn't quite made it to its destination when the beholder discarded it. However, this wasn't an ordinary scrap of paper; there appeared to be moving figures skirting along the page. It was probably just a Zonko's mass produced joke paper, yet Lily found the paper drawing. Before she could rethink her actions it was in her hands.

The silhouettes moving across the page turned out to be names, and it looked as though they were traveling throughout the Hogwarts grounds. There were countless numbers of names; they varied from students to teachers. Lily even spied her own name, situated in the common room. In the precise spot she was standing. Even as a witch who'd studied magic for over six years Lily found this particular enchantment to be amazing. Her eyes studied the page with content, and she nearly overlooked the title which informed her of the creators of the marvelous map: The Marauders. Wait – Lily recognized these names. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs. Were those not the names of those in James' posse? She was almost certain that the map belonged to them; they were the only ones in Gryffindor who she could think would have hold of such a map.

Lily heard a muffled yet frantic call of the current password to enter the common room and with a fleeting glance to the map she saw that it was James. The map might prove to be useful… But no, Lily had to give it back. She wasn't the kind of person who'd take hold of another's possession and use it to her advantage. The portrait flung open, so Lily made a fuss of stuffing the grubby parchment into her book bag.

"Morning, Evans," James' voice was cheerful and ecstatic, it sounded as though he'd done whatever possible to forget the incident which had occurred only two days before. Lily, however hadn't so she replied with a feeble acknowledgement, only nodding her head. James didn't seem to take much interest in Lily's presence though; he was craning his neck and spinning round rigidly as though he was searching for something he didn't want Lily to know about.

So the map was clearly important to him, and it wasn't something that she should know about. Lily was tempted to thrust the map into his hands and anger him by letting him know she was very aware of the map's existence. She ignored the urge; a new more brilliant plan had dawned upon her. Why shouldn't Lily delay her return of the map, after all she _had_ found it and just recently James had taken advantage of finding Lily's diary. They would be even.

So, instead Lily flashed him a sweet smile and asked in a perky voice "Are you missing something?" It was hard not to laugh. James looked as though he was surprised by her question, he was obviously not aware of how unsubtle his actions were. "As a matter of a fact I," he hesitated "am not." There was an obvious change of tone in his voice, it sounded as if he had caught himself mid-sentence and stopped himself from revealing the fact that he had lost anything at all.

"Oh, okay then," she sounded slightly taken a back, but gave him the same sugary smile "I'll just get off to class then."

"Right then, see you around."

With that Lily exited the common room – but she could've sworn that with a meek backwards glance James had dropped to his knees and was peering under a few chairs.

--

The map was certainly something of wonder. On her way to Ancient Runes Lily continued studying it and she discovered a few useful passageways that had been secret. She also found James jerking around the common room for quite some time after the bell; this almost made Lily feel guilty that she'd taken something that was so valuable. It was clearly a prized possession and it took her quite some effort to banish the thoughts of pity from her mind. James didn't deserve any sympathy, not from Lily anyways. He'd given her years of trouble, and not once would he apologize, his ego was far too grand.

Lily continued glancing gat the map all day, it soon became a habit –nearly an addiction. She found it interesting to learn where others spent their free time; it gave her a good idea of whom may be seeing whom secretly. Quite a few times Lily caught two people stored in a broom closet or tucked away in a spare classroom on the map. It pleased her to know that James wasn't one of those particular clients- he stuck with Remus, Sirius and Peter.

Avoiding James was a breeze. She didn't encounter him once the entire day, apart from their brief greeting in the morning.

However, she soon found that the map wasn't something she could use in public, it would be a cause for pesky questions and without a doubt the news of Lily taking hold of the Marauders' Map would reach James' ears before she would have a say on it. And that was something Lily certainly didn't want to occur. No matter how hard she tried to keep him off her mind, she just couldn't bear to part with his imprints embedded in her memory. Relentless of Lily's useless commands he would appear in her day dreams.

--

"What do you mean?" the voice was infuriated.

"Look, I can explain," a second voice sounded, filled with tones of disparity.

"How could you lose the map?"

"I'm sure it's just in my trunk or… something."

"I bet you that somebody threw it away- took it as rubbish!"

"I don't think that's the case." Nearly whispering now, the voice was meek and solemn. It sounded as if he were terribly concerned about something.

"What does that mean, Prongs?"

"Well, I don't think that I," he hesitated, not wanting to continue with the devastating news

"Don't tell me that you forgot to clear it."

"I was in a rush so, I just stashed it under a chair and it slipped my mind."

"So, somebody is just parading around the castle, taking advantage of it?"

"Look, Sirius--"

"I can't believe this."

Sirius and James never fought. No matter what happened, they'd be united and always, _always_, stick together. Yet here they were, letting a bit of parchment come between their valuable friendship which, until this point, had never been questioned. Sirius was mad at James, and that wasn't acceptable. James had to regain Sirius' trust by somehow repossessing the map. It would be a tedious task, to track anybody down without using what he was looking for. Padfoot wasn't going to help him, so this mission would be one for him to complete alone. This was saying something, seeing as he and Sirius were inseparable, solitary didn't suit James.

And that was precisely why this task had to be done, James couldn't bear to spend time apart from his fellow marauders. So that very day, James made a vow. He swore to go to any extent to track down the beholder of the Marauders' Map. James hadn't a clue quite how difficult it may prove to be. The most mischief was yet to be managed, yet it wasn't that James was solemnly swearing to.

**A/N- dun-dun-dah. The plot thickens. Please review, it will make my day and all of that crap.**

**I hope that you find this chapter to be a more suitable length. Because it took me about twice as long to finish. . **


	3. Mission Impossible

**A/N- I've been procrastinating the writing of the chapter… but here it is, rejoice. On a happier note, my little sister got two guinea pigs, and I've convinced her to name one Pigwidgeon. It certainly beats all of the other crapowlah ones that were originating from her mind. I can say that because she doesn't read my fanfics. Ha. Right, on with the review responses and chapter.**

**Sweet southerner: nice theory, but not quite. And even if it ws correct do you think I'd reveal my whole entire plot… just like that? –omnious music- **

**Ridiculousriddikulus: well, if you thought _that_ was a cliffie god knows what you'll say about this one. Heh.**

**Anaela loves who: awh, thanks. AA again, no plot shall be revealed, unless there is a bribe of some sort involved. Heh.**

**Shivering smile: I don't think innocent Lily would resort to blackmail! Or would she… ? **

**Puppy dog eyes jr: (aka bitchy 'licia) huddling for warmth is so awesome. It's cheese wiz. And sod is the best word in all of infinity. –glee-**

**Fanficky-chicky: I'm going to kill you one of these days, you know that? **

Damn. Not a single trunk belonging to any of his dorm mates contained a trace of the marauders map. James had scoured though each trunk residing in his dorm, obscuring every possession they might have but not really taking any interest in his false actions. Every piece of parchment he came across, whether it was scrawled upon or not, was tested. He must've muttered 'I solemnly swear that I am up to no good' several hundred times in the course of an hour. But had he really spent that long looking for the map, and come no closer to locating it?

He peeked a brief glance at his watch, the delicate hands informed him that that was indeed the case. It now seemed like a waste of time, perilously digging through trunks for his entire lunch break. Had it not occurred to him that if anybody came upon the map they would keep it with them at all times, unless the person was incredibly dense? So then, the solution was simple: all that James had to do was personally search every student in the school, all the while remaining secretive. Lovely. No matter how stealth James could be at times, there was no way that such a thing could be accomplished.

James heaved out a devastated sigh, flopping down on his untidy bed which hadn't been made in as long as he could remember – the house elves had abandoned all attempts to clean anything belonging to him. The memory of encountering a babbling elf who claimed that his things were cursed was still fresh in James' mind, implanted for him to enjoy at his own will. The thought made him smirk, but any looks of glee or amusement soon vanished from his complexion. He was on a mission, right.

Mission Impossible.

Yeah, that's what he'd call it. Sirius would've thought it humorous and had they been on speaking terms James would've seeked his best mate out and told him of his sudden idea. But he didn't, he kept it to himself and continued to wallow in self pity. It wasn't that he and Sirius weren't speaking at all, it was just that when they did all conversation was restrained and polite. He couldn't goof off for the time being; slowly yet surely it was affecting James, if even in the slightest way. Remus and Peter weren't quite as concerned about the temporary loss as Sirius, but he could never find as much comfort or relief in talking to them as he could with Padfoot.

So here James was, missing lunch and rummaging through trunks and what not. How much longer this could continue, he wasn't sure.

--

Now what was James doing all alone in the boys dorm during a free period? Lily stared quizzically at the map, wondering precisely what the mischief maker could possibly be doing. Could he be ill? No, that couldn't be the case –a quick trip to the hospital wing and a swig of antidote would cure anything minor. So then, what exactly was James preoccupied with? Lily didn't want to think of the possibility that he might, just might, be searching for his beloved map, it couldn't be that precious- could it? The weight of guilt overcame her momentarily, but her mental dispute was cut short by a lovely reminder of a crucial class.

By the time that Lily had stored the map securely in her bag, in such a way that it was wedged into so many intricate pouches that it wouldn't be accessible to anybody but somebody who thourally searched her pack, nearly everybody had proceeded to their next class. This left Lily as the last person to enter the transfiguration room where she spied few unoccupied seats, most of them surrounding James. His fellow marauders appeared to have abandoned him and were seated quite a ways away from him. Lily tried to convince herself that it was merely a coincidence, but wasn't successful. Before she could properly think her motives through she was sitting next to James, it was as though her nerves and instinct had acted without her conformation.

"Hello," her voice sounded naturally cheerful and not out of place, Lily wasn't sure who it belonged to.

"Evans? Hey, take a seat,"

James looked taken aback by her sudden arrival, since when did Lily, sit next to him using her own free will? Regardless of him momentary thoughts, James beamed at Lily. This made her feel slightly uncomfortable and guilty, he hadn't a clue as to what Lily was hiding from him. Perhaps it was better off that way, if this map was causing such trouble then how could she ever admit to setting off the occurrence of unfortunate events? Maybe things would be better off if Lily kept the map to herself for the rest of her stay at Hogwarts, or was that selfish? Judging by the almost sullen look on James' face it would be greedy. She didn't wish for such misery to bestow upon James, in fact, she would prefer it if he regained interest in his friends and became preoccupied with them as opposed to have free time to speak with Lily, or have free seats in the area around his. She was avoiding him at all costs so that would be the most sensible option.

Professor McGonogall's voice filled the classroom, letting Lily focus her attention towards the instructions being given and forget about any of her dilemmas.

"…and I expect each and every member of this class to be able to correctly transfigure a simple creature, such as this garden slug…" her words faded slowly as Lily lost her previously vivid attention and began gazing to her direct left. His hazel hues were set in such a way that they picked up the natural light beaming from the arched windows placed at even intervals along the rear wall. They glittered majestically, Lily stared intently into their seemingly infinite depths until she head a sharp "commence," followed by the sound of dozens of student's chairs scraping; they were collecting various animals whom were to be transfigured from the front desk Lily followed suit, even though she wasn't completely sure what they were supposed to be doing to the abnormally large insects.

The task soon became clear, everybody around her was flicking their wands at their bugs, the occasional one would sprout a few feathers, or a pair of rugged wings. Just two days ago the class had been assigned to read the chapter on how to transfigure certain body parts; in this case a pair of wings. Lily mustered as much concentration as she could manage and stated the incantation clearly, directing her wand at her earthworm which was approximately twenty centimeters in length. Many of her peers were squirming or complaining about the repulsive critters, but Lily didn't let the appearance offend her in any way.

As Lily peered towards James she could see that he had mastered the spell, that was positive, but he hadn't quite managed to direct the spell correctly. Instead of getting his plump slug to grow wings, he'd made the_ desk_ capable of flying. Two fluorescent wings were perched atop it and were flapping frantically, causing much commotion. They didn't take the desk into flight, but were simply making it graze the stable floor, James was looking rather alarmed and didn't have the faintest idea what he could possibly do to resolve the situation. Lily giggled; she couldn't restrain herself. He looked so helplessly troubled, almost cute. No, he didn't look cute –he looked just as cocky and arrogant as ever, simply with a few major changes. His hair didn't normally acquire such desirability, and his expression seemed to complement his every feature.

"You think this is funny?" James asked her in tones of mock concern, motioning to the levitating desk and accidentally brandishing his wand towards the slug which was slowly progressing to the edge of the rickety desk. It landed with a loud splat; making Lily's gag reflexes act up slightly. Lily couldn't help but release the tension which was growing painfully in her abdomen and let out a more obvious laugh. She may not have been breaking into fits of hysteria but she found the entire situation overwhelming. All former regrets and doubts were replaced with a feeling of giddiness. James too joined in on the laughter, though his was more of a rich laughter – a lot more mature then the last one she'd heard emit from his mouth. But wait, Lily wasn't laughing at something that he too though funny? She ceased the laughter simultaneously, reminding herself of the position she held. Ignore him at all risks.

"Nothing a little counter-jinx can't fix," James muttered the reversing spell which they hadn't technically learned in class yet and the desk thumped back into place.

A confused and frustrated expression occupied James' face before the end of class, one minute Lily was acting bubbly and warm and the next she isolated herself from him. Had they not just been laughing together? Then, why had she not replied to any more of his remarks and merely grunted in response to anything he asked her? Had it been something he said? Had done? Hadn't done? James considered confronting her with his suspicions but decided against it when she exited the class so briskly that he had barely gathered his things by the time she'd reached the door.

One thing was certain: Lily was definitely hiding something from James and was clearly suffering from some type of self-conflict. What James wanted to know was what. And why. It didn't cross his mind that their two problems revolved around the same object, he wouldn't dare accuse Lily of taking the marauders map. She seemed like the least likely candidate in his biased opinion. He ignored every particle of information which directed him towards her. The worst had not encountered him just yet, but he remained completely oblivious to the rapidly approaching event which may or may not end catastrophically…

**A/N- I'm not too crazy about the ending there, and sorry that it is to some degree a cliffie. You'll just have to wait patiently though, at least I don't take TEN DAYS to update. –nudge Alicia/puppy-**

**Gr. Anyways, reviews are greatly appreciated- if I don't receive any I may just perish. So, please for my sake as well as the fic's.**


	4. Full

**A/N- I'm not quite sure if the plot is too abrupt, I couldn't decided whether or not I should insert more fluff before this bit. I didn't think that I wouldn't progress without this, so a bit of drama will now take place. Note: I have temporarily borrowed a word from a friend of mine who has claimed it as her own. Fanficky, I inserted prat just for you so be grateful I mentioned you. (look for asterix)**

**Zee review responses:**

**Sweet southerner: Don't fear, I'm quite sure that many Lily/James (including me) fans would say the same; it's not uncommon to feel all gushy. 3**

**Ridiculousriddikilus: Cliffies are far too fun to write, though this chapter doesn't really include one. How devastating.**

**Shivering smile: James is a special case. Lily loves him regardless of his actions, so I guess it isn't too horrible. (:**

**Deirdre: merci.**

**Fanficky-chicky: beware. I can see your young decease approaching… **

It'd been quite some time since Lily's odd choice of seating during that fateful transfiguration class, it seemed so to Lily at any rate. In reality only a few days had passed by, however in her own enclosure, her mind, it seemed an eternity. So much time was now devoted to thinking of James that time didn't seem to pass at all, but merely dangle before her or stop abruptly and make an hour solitude feel like ten. She had now begun obsessing over the map, tracking his every step and decision. The schedule which she'd previously memorized was now so intricate that she could estimate exactly when he would go to sleep for the night, and when a bathroom stop would be necessary.

She would spend so much time convincing herself that every measure she took was to separate herself from him, to help herself be rid of the prat. The only time of the day during which Lily would act normally was during class, then she would participate regularly and achieve the same brilliant average as she was expected of. Homework would be completed regularly with the same high standards and then she would burrow her nose in the map. A couple of her dorm mates thought this odd, but most assumed she had just come upon a recent fascination with books.

That very night, the one which was a routine for her, happened to be the night of a full moon. The sky had not yet turned inky black but the colours stretched across it were darkening, and the sun soon became a mere silhouette along the horizon.

Much to Lily's disbelief, she saw the four figures whom she'd been intently observing abruptly leave the common room where they'd been lingering previously. She watched their names move gradually towards the entrance hall, and then right out the front doors. What they were doing, she hadn't a clue, according to her clock it was far past the time that night time strolls would be permitted. She furrowed her brow in suspicion, surly they wouldn't take one of their plans to such an extent.

They continued moving along the grounds, passing any common landmarks where she suspected them to end up. In fact, they were headed right to the least likely area: the whomping willow which had been planted only four years before. It appeared as though they were walking directly towards the tree… and it now looked as though they'd actually gone inside the destructive plant. When she studied the map further she found that they were traveling through a narrow passage that dispersed from it. Lily's curiosity overcame her, how she longed to pursue the boys and discover their destination. But, no. That wouldn't be a wise decision and she didn't want to be caught up in something that was over her head, the actions of the boys could be far worse then she could think up, even on her creative days.

But then, how would she ever figure out James strange habits? The map might help her more, if she could watch their every move and try to figure out exactly what they were up to.

This proved to be more easy said than done, Lily was have a great trouble attempting to follow their footsteps. They were moving quickly, as though they were in a rush and when she studied James' figure carefully she saw that his name was moving in such a graceful way that he might've been a deer or something of the sort. When they finally stopped, Lily had began to become dreary with sleep, she was feeling drowsy and nearly drifted off. However, when she saw that the tunnel had led to a building her senses became alert once again. It was the very edge of the map, it didn't go any further and she feared that if they exited the building then she may not be able to track them any longer.

Much to her delight, they stopped at the space labeled 'Shrieking Shack'. Did they fancy a walk around Hogsmeade? Were they investigating the inhabitants of the recently haunted house? Lily studied the parchment vividly, wishing that she could zoom in and be allowed to view specific details. They were rampaging around the house in a manner lily thought should be reserved for animals, none of the boys lost interest however, they continued to chase each other around the house, into every room. They took a brief break, Lily had only been giving the map half her attention until she saw where the were located: the bedroom.

Her mind was immediately filled with dirty thoughts that she didn't think her own mind would come up with, and she banished the quickly. It wasn't because she felt ashamed of herself, no. And the prospect was truly quite believable, seeing as the posse remained devoted to each other. Just recently James had looked disappointed... was this their way of celebrating their making up? The truth was, Lily didn't want this to be true. How could James desire her company for so long, and then switch off to his best mates? She cringed, restraining what she though were tears from her eyes. They were brimming, the slightest motion might release them and then…

"Lily?" she whipped her head around, staring defensively at the figure in her door way. It was her dorm mate, Tracey. They had never been particularly close but they got along considerably well.

"Yes?" she tried to keep her tone casual, and sound as if she had been doing something perfectly normal as opposed to imagining James doing unthinkable things with fellow males.

"We're all starting a round of chess downstairs and just wondering if you-" she stopped abruptly, noticing the condition of Lily's complexion- pale and distraught. She had been acting moody recently, and Tracey was hoping that Lily might spill the beans as to why she'd been acting up, she absorbed gossip like a sponge. "Are you okay?"

"The book I was reading… it uh, had a sad ending." Lily lied plainly, smiling bleakly. Tracey looked unconvinced, but she didn't want to pester Lily any further when she was in such a condition, she wasn't _that_ inconsiderate.

"So, you don't fancy a game of chess then?"

"I think I'll pass."

"Feel free to join in, if you want to or whatever." Tracey then left Lily to mourn freely, it probably wasn't a wide decision. Lily just continued to get more and more depressed. She knew she shouldn't, it wasn't her business who James liked. After all, it wasn't like she wished him to like her. To get him off her back would be bliss. Would it not?

She abandoned the map for the rest of the night, ignoring any itches of curiosity, she figured that anything occurring might be better off un surveyed.

--

James was feeling better then he had in a week, although he had missed out on an entire night's sleep he felt giddy. Full moons tended to bond the four Marauders together, and he appreciated the fact more so now then ever. He had feared that he could be excluded from this particular cycle, but Sirius, Remus and Peter had encouraged him to attend. The awkwardness between him and Sirius had cleared for the night, he was able to enjoy the time just as well as he ever would've. The Shrieking Shack had certainly maintained it's title that night the apparent 'haunting' was as loud and psychotic as usual.

Now, as they walked back to the castle in the rising sun a bit of the bliss evaporated. Their previous ecstatic conversation had died down slightly, and James feared that he and his friends may not get a chance to speak freely again until they regained possession of the map. Either that, or until the next full moon. He seriously hoped that their friendship would reoccur before that time.

A spark of hope lightened for James, for even as they entered the boys dorm where the four hoped to gain at least a little rest, particularly moony who had the most difficult job of the four, Sirius was warming up to him.

"Look, Padfoot. About the map." James began apologetically.

"Nah, don't worry Prongs. We'll find it." Remus and Peter nodded along.

"So then-?" James was cut off by a very weary sounding Lupin.

"It was unanimous, we've decided to stop ignoring you," he popped a stray piece of chocolate into his mouth "But seriously, shut up now. I need sleep."

James beamed. He loved fulls.

**A/N- what can I say? I couldn't keep dear Prongsiepoo away from his friends any longer; it would make me feel far too guilty.**

**Originally I was going to have Lily actually follow James, but I decided that that would be ooc. Not to mention it would be a really long chapter. . nah, I'm not that lazy.**

**Review and I'll love you for eternity. -- **


	5. White Lies

**A/N- After just seeing Goblet of Fire for the third time in imax (squeak) I was incredibly inspired to write a horrendously vulgar chapter. Some of the things that movie implies… heh let's just say my wacko friends and I don't handle the situations too well. I wasn't sure if the last chapter moved too quickly, I seriously considered changing the ending so James wasn't all chum-chum with the marauders, but I felt guilty for him. How can I deprive the infamous Marauders of each others company? **

**Note: I thought I'd make this chapter considerably longer, the previous ones now seem too abrupt, so that is the reason for my possible delay in updation.**

**Review Responses of sorts –rejoice-**

**Krisnn: 'kay thanks. **

**Sweet southerner: I just didn't think it very Lily-ish to follow them, after all she is a bit of a goody-two-shoes.**

**Ridiculousriddikilus: keep writing I shall**

**Mchintap: If he didn't that then there wouldn't be much of a plot, now would there? James isn't quite that inventive. XD**

**Fanficky-chicky: out of the question. You are a mental sod. –smacks repeatedly-**

**Shivering smile: heh. She is a tad sick minded.**

**A. Lynn the poet: uh… okay okay okay okay okay okay okay (repeat x100)**

"Lily?" Lily groaned and submerged herself into the depths of her welcoming duvet.

"Lily." She completely ignored the repetition; it seemed far too early to wake.

"We have class." She peered open an eye cautiously; the sliver which was revealed was ridden with sleep.

_"Lily!"_

"Alright, I'm up, I'm up," Lily replied in a strained voice, pushing away her warm covers which were still heated from her body to give her dorm mate evidence.

"Finally."

Since when was Lily the one who was being forcefully awoken? In the past it had always been her duty, she was the one who dedicated her energy to bringing her mates to consciousness. Yet here she was, distraught from her lack of sleep and struggling to snap to reality even though her first class was due to begin in ten minutes.

Maybe, just maybe he was getting to her. Slowly, gradually chiseling away at her composure and rehearsed defense. It had been bothering her tremendously, the midnight visit with his 'mates' and whatnot, how much more of this Lily could endure she wasn't sure. Her previously innocent mind was now enveloped in a coat of disturbing thoughts which haunted her dreams, sleeping peacefully with out a disruption was a challenge.

--

First block of the day, and already Lily was feeling miserable. Under normal circumstances she found Charms to be quite likeable, however that wasn't the case on this particular dreary day.

She raised her hand and offered to answer any question directed to the class, took notes and absorbed any piece of information the professor offered that she thought might prove useful in the future. She managed to master the simple charm were supposed to practice without a challenge, and participated in the meaningless conversation with her mates, smiling, commenting and even giggling at every correct interval.

Yet something was out of line.

Not on the outside, no, she appeared seemingly unscathed to those around her, even those who paid close attention couldn't identify a problem in her behavior.

Lily however, she could sense it. A developing knot in the pit of her stomach was persistently tightening, and it wasn't her time of the month for another two weeks. It was clear that this related to a certain boy, to his certain choice of activities. Even knowing that he existed made Lily hyperventilate. She needed to release her stress, something had to be straightened, James Potter needed to become a figment of her past, a mere looming shadow whom she could forget about and ignore.

She figured that the easiest way to go about the deed would be to confront him, tell him off and insult him to such an extent that he would never dare murmur another word to her, or even request something as innocent as borrowing a quill. Sure, she'd let her rage out on him before but never had she let her wrath unwind fully, he had always continued to pester her after any blowup she had. Lily needed to give him an awe-inspiring, life changing, sentimental speech that would force him to let Lily live her life peacefully, without any rude interruptions or temptations. This wasn't a task to be completed in front of the entire student body, or a public display of any sort. She needed to be far more discreet. The last thing Lily wanted was a sod like Sirius interfering and defending her prey.

A mental note was made to corner Potter the next time she saw his name drifting amongst the ink of 'her' map in solitaire. Of course, she would also be obliged to hand the map over to its rightful owner, if she kept it for her own use there was no doubt she would abuse it and seek out James.

The plan may have seemed insane to a certain to degree to others but Lily –not being on the ball at the time- thought it perfectly splendid and acceptable.

--

"Aren't you coming to lunch with us?" a group of eager girls gestured to Lily, hoping that her phase of moodiness had passed. She had seemed well enough during the morning classes and they hoped to regain their mate for good.

"Uh, I was actually planning on, erm," Lily paused, wishing she had thought of an applicable reason to describe her absence that she hoped to take during the free period ahead of time, "you know, um, scrubbing cauldrons for Slughorn! Yeah, that's right!"

Okay, so maybe it wasn't a brilliant excuse. Her friends didn't think so either, strange looks were exchanged amongst them.

"You sure about that?"

"Oh yeah, it should be a blast."

"Uh… Lily? Are you feeling alright?"

"Oh yeah, great!" maybe a tad overenthusiastic.

"It's just, who in their right mind would scrub cauldrons for fun?" she had a point.

"It's for extra credit!" A stroke of genius. That was something that she would do anyways, being someone who would do just about any job for her grades.

"Ohhh" The four girls were in perfect unison.

"Jinx!"

"Merlin, you can be so immature."

"But we all said it at the same time!"

"It's not even a real word."

"You guys are no fun."

"At least we don't spend our free time cleaning cauldrons."

Lily stuck out her tongue and then waved a brief goodbye, leaving them to continue their repetitive argument which now consisted of 'is too', 'is not', 'is too', 'is not'. She smirked momentarily, nearly letting herself enjoy the moment as opposed to fret about the person who she was to encounter.

It looked as though this wasn't going to prove to be a simple quest, now that James had started spending time with the marauders again (god knows why, Lily had her suspicions) it was just about impossible to find him alone. Lily cursed, although it wasn't a regular habit of hers she felt the situation called for it, she was feeling rather depressed and the undeniable sensation in her stomach clenched as she wished another quarrel to spread amongst the quartet.

He would most likely disregard anything she said to him, seeing as he had his buddies to keep him constant company and fulfill his need for a relationship. Lily had just about decided that it would be best to abandon mission and retreat to her friends, pretending that she had the dates mixed up and cauldron scrubbing took place yesterday. She was perfectly capable of ignoring her emotions, was she not? There was no need to speak a word to him.

But then, according to the glorious maps, he peeled off the group and walked into a room alone. The perfect opportunity had arisen. Without further ado, she tossed the map recklessly between her "Standard Book of Spells, Grade Seven" and took a quick route to where she had seen him disappear.

She pushed at the door, surprisingly it swung open naturally, there was no sign that it had ever been locked. Lily took no notice on the sign perched on the door and marched into the room cautiously, wondering what it contained. The floor was tiled, that was the first out of place thing that caught her eye. There were rows of sinks and…

Oh God. Lily recoiled, dashing out the door which read 'Boy's Lavatory' just as quickly as she had entered. What if he had seen her? Or worse, what if she had seen him? How could she have been so oblivious to her surroundings, parading into the loo was not something on her to do list, especially not while Potter was occupying it.

The door swung open, a familiar pompous strut became visible and Lily had to step backwards in order to avoid the door. She nearly toppled over; her reflexes were activated just in the nick of time.

"Evans? What're you doing…" James asked her in tones of curiosity, he craned his neck and scanned the area, as if he were checking for a sign of why Lily was lurking outside the bathroom.

"Oh, I was just… you know." She really needed to get better at lying on the spot.

"No, actually I don't."

"I was uh, scrubbing cauldrons for Slughorn." Damn it. Not so brilliant.

"You were… wait-what?"

"It's irrelevant. But uh, now that I see you there is something I'd like to say…" Here it was her big chance. She would tell him just what she thought of his cocky habits, how she thought him to be a revolting specimen who didn't deserve to live life without a purpose, how she wished that he would cease to exist and leave her alone. Her theory on how pigheadedness of others affected those around them and that if he was the least bit considerate he would…

"What were you doing?" she blurted out. But no, that wasn't correct. What happened to arrogant, insignificant, slimy toe rag who wasn't capable of possessing human emotion?

"Uh, what do you think I was doing? I was in the loo for Merlin's sake! I don't think you want me to go into detail because I-"

Lily cut him off, "Not now, I'm talking about the other night when you and Sirius and them all went to the shrieking shack an had a… a…" she was lost for words, it appeared as though James was too. He was staring remorsefully at Lily, his eyes bore holes through hers, they were filled with disbelief.

"I mean I'm not suggesting that you four are… well… all I mean to say is… that uh," she was clearly embarrassed, "that maybe you lot have… morefeelingsforeachotherthenasfriends" the last part of her statement came out in a flurry of mixed syllables. It took quite some time for James to decipher her chain of words, he almost felt like laughing when she spoke of her theory, seeing as he was straight as alaser beam. However at the moment he wasn't in the best of moods, Lily had just confessed that she knew the Marauders were up to something. It was a secret, _their_ secret. Not a soul, excluding themselves, the nurse and Dumbledore knew about Remus's furry little problem. He couldn't tell her, he shouldn't, he wouldn't.

Luckily, James proved to be a bit quicker on the spot then Lily, an excuse popped into his head without much difficulty. And no, they weren't scrubbing cauldrons.

"We were just investigating; we wanted to know what truly lies within the shack."

Lily sighed a deep breath of relief; James could've just as easily confirmed her fears as he denied them. She had the sudden urge she had to embrace her opponent in a hug, but expertisely resisted it. "So then you're not…"

"I don't know where you get these ideas from, Evans." James shook his head playfully, rolling his eyes slightly. He still had one un answered question though: how did she know? "How did you find out about us leaving in the first place?" he asked pryingly, already he had accusations in his mind.

"Oh, uhhhh." She was lost for ideas.

"Honestly, this isn't a laughing matter." James tone switched to a serious one, he advanced on her, stepping forward so that the two were a mere foot apart.

Two feet. Lily took a step backwards, feeling his warm breath on her skin wasn't a sensation she enjoyed, it was up there with receiving a howler.

"You know what? I haven't eaten lunch yet. I really need some food or else I'll be cranky for the rest of the day, and oh! Look at the time," Lily stared at an imaginary wrist watch, bearing a phony smile all of the while. "bye, then." After giving James a timid wave she turned around in a single swift motion, her adrenaline was pulsing and she felt that if she needed to run, she could. Now, running was completely different than running from a strong, no, very strong Quidditch player who happened to have reflexes better then her own. James grabbed Lily's wrist, causing her to stop in her tracks.

"Tell. Me." He pronounced each word clearly with much defiance, he certainly wasn't going to let Lily get away. She yanked at her wrist, but his grasp was firm.

"Alright, alright." She gave in, sighing deeply as she did so. Was she not going to return the map to him in the first place?

"You see, I happen to have-"

"Prongs!"

Sirius was her savior. The momentary distraction that he caused was enough for Lily to slip away from James, she made an exit fairly easily as he turned away and focused his attention to his mate.

"What took you so long? We were starting to wonder if you had… wait, was that Evans?" Sirius stopped abruptly, squinting at the spot where she'd been located only seconds before.

"Did you make your move?" asked a very eager Wormtail, who was smiling as though it was him who accomplished the task he spoke of.

"No… nothing like that." James replied breezily, furrowing his brows together beneath his matt of raven hair. The last thing he wanted was his gang of friends searching Lily for any traces of the map which he now suspected her to have access to. He didn't believe her to be the one hiding it from them, he was far too naïve to imagine that. One of her dorm mates perhaps.

No matter how much he wished Lily to be innocent James couldn't help but wonder if she was somewhat responsible for the sudden disappearance of the Marauders' Map. Like it or not, he would have to investigate further, whether it meant relying on secrecy or not. Little did he know that if he were to rummage through Lily's pack he would find things that he thought would prove to be far more useful then a silly map, far more useful.

**A/N- What did you think? Yay or Nay? Review and I shall reward you with eternal glory or at the very least a response in the next chapter. (Which will be posted more quickly if you review!)**


	6. Nothing

**Nothing**

**A/N- This Chapter is dedicated to TT, I must give her credit from one particuar line which involves a pun and Remus's pet name.**

**Musical Inspiration: Alexz Johnson (yet another pop CD belonging to my little sister)**

**Note: I hate this chapter. I was brain dead… sorry about the wait but I really didn't want to post it because it sucks. **

**(I'm far too tired to make review responses but I love all who reviewed to death. Thanks so much. (: )**

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing, Nothing? Or _Nothing,_ Nothing?"

Merlin, Sirius could be a pain in the arse at times.

"Nothing as in nothing."

"Ah, but my dear friend 'Nothing' is a completely different concept then _'Nothing' _or NOTHING."

Scratch that- he was constantly a pain in the arse. Ever since the Marauders had stumbled upon James and Lily having a some what civilized conversation they considered the feuding pair to be a couple, an 'item' one might say. In his dreams.

"Padfoot, sod off."

"Getting defensive, are we?" Sirius inquired, raising his eyebrows in such a way that forced Remus to have to stifle a chuckle erupting from his throat.

"I wouldn't be laughing, Remus. Seeing as you too are guilty."

That wiped the smirk off his face. It was as though his lopsided grin had been made of chalk, and Sirius was brandishing an eraser. "I haven't a clue what you're getting at," Lupin replied stiffly, straightening his back and making his statement sound final. Many would've been intimidated, Sirius and Peter found it all the more reason to begin a rant.

"You, in the broom cupboard…" Sirius began.

"…during lunch…" continued Wormtail.

"… after class…" They were alternating lines, James though this resembled the habits of an old married couple but kept his comments to himself in fear of the taunting to be redirected to him.

"…before class…"

"…last trip to hogsmeade…"

"…the trip before that…"

"…snogging that girl…"

"…shagging that girl…"

"They don't call you Moony for nothing for nothing, eh?" James piped in, causing Sirius to snort and slap him on the back in appreciation for his contribution. Remus looked just about as amused as a mass murderer might.

He had said the word. "Nothing, you say Sir Prongs? What type of nothing were you referring to?"

Back to square one.

--

Once again, he had tracked her. It was the fourth time that day, each time Lily had narrowly escaped the situations James forced her into. This time he had cornered her –literally. She had been innocently strolling to the library in hope of returning a book when he pounced on her, metaphorically, giving her no way to escape.

"Nothing." Lily repeated strenuously, the conversation had only just begun but she despised the direction it was headed. She had only hoped that James wouldn't be able to catch on to her peculiar behavior, if only she hadn't blurted out the comment about him earlier.

"Evvvvans," James pleaded, he didn't want to resort to begging but it seemed to be affecting her, more so annoying her. He would crack her, that was for sure.

"Stop pestering me." Her eyes flashed with fury, she wasn't about to admit that she had stolen a map and caused a great fiasco.

"Show me what's in your bag."

"NO, you prick. Go crawl under a rock and cease to exist or…something."

"I know you're hiding something from me."

"It's nothing!" According to Sirius's definition that particular pronunciation of 'nothing' symbolized guilt, ensuring the fact that if the person was too keen on hiding something then it meant that the 'nothing' was a very secretive 'something'. In this case James suspected evidence, evidence which would direct him to his precious, the map. It was either that or a stash of tampons. Both options seemed appealing to James, if there was a way to get into Lily's bag he was up for it.

"If it's nothing then why won't you show me?"

Lily hated it when he had a point. "I don't wan to rummaging through my personal belongings!" she screeched defensively, clutching her pale hands in anguish.

"Why not?" James asked with an act of innocence. Lily almost couldn't bear to deprive him of access. _Almost_.

"Because I said so." She retorted in a matter of fact voice, glaring all the while.

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Pretty Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

Lily was the one to end the immature sequence, she resentfully undid the clasp on her messenger bag and emptied the contents into James outstretched arms. One book. James was disappointed, he had been hoping that it would hold secrets which he could learn to unleash and eventually use to his advantage. But no, Lily had to be the dull being she was and carry a drafty book about Poly Juice Potion around. He sighed begrudgingly but began leafing through the pages nevertheless.

That very same day Lily had placed the map in her robes for safe keeping, having expected the very same behavior that James was displaying to occur. She was very thankful now, and with a dismissive wave she left him to consult the book further. "Just return it to the Library when you're done inspecting," she called over her shoulder. He had just saved her a chore, she was long done with the book and had been meaning to replace it for quite some time and now she had gotten Potter to do her dirty work, it was sheer brilliance.

"Derrick writes to us, 'I wanted to impress my girlfriend with my potions skills so I brewed up a poly juice potion for her birthday. I thought she'd find it funny if I tested it out on myself and made it look like I was her! I used a piece of her hair, and sure enough it worked. On my way to enchant her with my flashy looks I encountered her ex! To my surprise he lunged in and kissed me! He thought I was my girlfriend and was trying to get back together with her. I was so appalled that I…"

The letter went on and on, James didn't bother to finish reading it. A perfect plan had dawned upon him, a poly juice potion would enable him to search through Lily's things more vigorously without seeming inconspicuous. If he could only turn into her for an hour he was sure he could get to the bottom of things. All he had to do was get his hands on a bit of poly juice potion, it may not have been the simplest of tasks but he was sure that it could be accomplished with a bit of help from his mates. Already, his mind was breeched with tactics.

--

Lily was fuming, she was shocked that her surroundings didn't burst into flame. He had gone so far as to request to see her bag. Did it not occur to him that people often didn't like others nosing through their every possession constantly? It was bad enough that a few weeks back he had stolen her diary- or so she reminded herself. He was a snooping meddler, and she detested the fact. How did he learn to be so persuasive anyways? It wasn't that he was a great debater, any comeback or reasoning he would think of could be abolished by a second year. It was the way he said it, his tone of voice, his facial expressions, the way he made you feel as if he'd love you forever if his standards were met…

Had Lily wanted to she could've bitten his head off, thrown an overwhelming stream of insults in his direction and given a tantrum. But for some reason, and it wasn't a sign of maturity, she had given him exactly what he wished for. Not that it would help him at all, really she shouldn't be fretting about giving him access to a public book. It was the fact that he had been so bold as to ask her straight forward if he could shuffle through her things as though it wasn't a big deal.

It was clear that he thought her actions suspicious, he was no longer oblivious to the crime which had taken place right beneath his own nose. Should she make it seem as though somebody else had stolen the map, or leave things as they be and let James eventually accuse her. It was a definite toss up, she valued both her trust with James and her conscience. Would she be able to sleep at night if she made it seem as though somebody else had taken it? She had been able to gradually get over her emotional breakdowns which she'd experienced thanks to her theft.

That very night both her and James minds were active, both were fixed upon making things right. Just, both had a different perception of what _was_ correct.

**A/N- No inspiration. I'm finding it had to think of something more to add to this chapter without seeming repetitive, I've got a plan for the next chapter if that is of any comfort though…**

**Reviews are very appreciated, feedback on how I could improve the chapter would be helpful… if the story is lacking a component then inform me of the problem and I'll attend to it.**


	7. The Transformation

**A/N- We all suffer from writers block at times, do we not? In my case, a very extreme one. It was really triggered by a sequence of negative events, all of which pushed me further from finishing this chapter. Finals, my computer dieing, lack of reviews, loosing inspiration blah blah blah. I can understand if you've abandoned this story in my absence but please, try to give it a second chance. I know I am!**

A thick blanket of snow clung to the earth and nobody was taking advantage of it. The drifts of white fluff lay in the same format they had in the morning, no students had tread along the dusty surface in fear of destroying the seemingly flawless scenery. The trees' majestic swags were draped with the same substance that coated the ground; such an effect couldn't be mimicked even with the luxury of magic.

Sirius, of course, thought this the perfect reason to go for an afternoon stroll. While as most of the students were using the winter Saturday to relax within the common room and gaze out of the window he was set on destroying the perfection. It had been on display for a few hours and having a short attention span he couldn't bear to stay cooped up any longer. There had been a dramatic change in the climate, only last month the weather had been satisfactory. There had even been a couple select days where the temperature was so fair that he had taken off his cloak and gone round in just his robes.

He crept out before the Gryffindor tower and gathered a considerate amount of the snow, forcing it to form into a compact sphere. He didn't have quite the accurate arm that James had, after all he was a chaser, but he was practiced enough in the art to hit the window at which he was aiming square on. Remus's troubled face appeared instantly in the fogged pane, Sirius beckoned him down.

In record time the Marauders were reunited, tossing snowballs at each other and taking aim at anything that moved. Sirius got preoccupied with smacking the girls' dormitory for every time an object made contact several girls would gather at the window, giggling and pointing to the mayhem below.

James hadn't yet informed his mates of his brilliant plan; he figured that now would be an ideal time to expose it. When the combat had come to an end and the window got concealed in snow he began explaining. At first he wasn't certain about sharing the plot with his friends, but in the end the glory he would receive outweighed the fact that it would make Lily look suspicious.

He first retold the incidents during which he confronted Evan, not missing a spare detail. Not even Sirius lost interest- it was a sure sign that the melodrama wasn't over exaggerated. James hesitated just before he was going to reveal his scheme which would bring him a few steps closer to discovering the culprit. Although he could trust his mates he wasn't sure if it would be a wise decision to announce it publicly. Since when did James Potter delay the spread of rumors? It wasn't uncommon for him to blurt out random articles of trivia with his fellow marauders, why was this any different?

"So the book Evans gave me," he began, letting tones of eagerness flow through his masculine voice, "it gave me an idea. If I could get hold of some Polyjuice potion I could turn into her for a while and rummage through her things without looking suspicious."

Sirius's eyes immediately widened in glee, the possibilities were infinite. He could sneak into a girls' bathroom without being interrupted by the pictures on the wall scolding him, or the hissing females themselves who would scream mercilessly.

"Whaddaya think?" James asked casually, drawing a hand to his hair and ruffling it, accidentally flinging out the snow which was freezing his scalp in such a way that Peter's tawny hair was soon dusted in the flakes.

"Hell yah!" Sirius hollered enthusiastically, though it was obvious he wasn't thinking along the same lines James was. "Could you snag a pair of knickers for me, Prongs?" he asked suggestively, elbowing him sharply in the ribs.

"It'll take some time to brew up the potion, though." Remus informed them cynically.

"Slughorn's got to have a stash. We can nick some." Responded Sirius who's spirits hadn't been damped by the comment.

James couldn't help but grin broadly, being depressed in his friends' presence wasn't something he was capable of.

"Do yah think I could have a spot of it?"

Remus whacked Sirius on the side of the head harshly, causing the handsome boy to fake an innocent "what?"

--

Lily managed to avoid James for the remainder of the week, she assumed it to be good fortune when in reality he was purposely staying away from her. He was constantly busy plotting with the marauders; he wanted every aspect of his hour in her body to be perfected.

Sirius wasn't much help; his idea of well spent time often involved taking advantage of being permitted access to certain girl-infested areas of the castle. Peter mostly listened in with admiration, after his first twenty ideas had been shot down he basically gave up on trying to voice his opinion. Needless to say, the mastermind in chief was the resident werewolf. James encouraged him to go over the details to such an extent that he threatened to bite his head off next time the full moon came round. Seeing as Remus wasn't one to lose his temper this proved just how obsessive James could get.

Everything was seamless; they found a small stock of Polyjuice potion in Slughorn's storage without much difficultly. The only mistake made was in asking Peter to collect some part of Lily; he had right out asked her "Can I have some of your DNA?"

Sirius wasn't much better, his idea of being subtle was saying "You have a bug in your hair!" before ripping out a few stands. He may have been successful but before long Lily grew suspicious, she had switched to 'on-guard' mode. Luckily when Sirius had removed the crimson locks from her scalp he'd gathered excess, it became the most recent contribution to James Podium of Worship. He had a habit of collecting stray things which had been touched by, or previously belonged to Lily.

A week passed, and then it was time.

--

"Go on now,"

James winced as he witnessed Sirius cursing Lily, then dragging her into a broom closet where she was to be monitored at all costs and eventually have her memory wiped. Sirius gave James the thumbs up, the indicator of his transformation. He pulled a small vile from within his robes and cautiously uncorked it, adding the essence of Lily. He drained the thick liquid in one gulp, downing it without a second thought.

Seeing as the transformation wasn't immediate, and James felt as though he could vomit he wisely took refuge in the boys' lavatory which was conveniently only a few strides away. There, he examined the process of his face morphing into hers. It was disturbing and somewhat painful but when it was through he was pleased with the outcome. Staring back at him, emerald eyed in the mirror was a carbon copy of Lily, complete in every aspect. Before he knew what was occurring James found a few of Sirius' tips ebbing there way to the front of his mind. Set before him on a silver platter was an entirely vulnerable Lily whom he could do whatever he like with…

James thoughts were smashed into oblivion by the original scheming male in the flesh, "Oy, Prongs! Did it work?"

The mutation of James and Lily took an attempted calming breath of air previous to responding, "Yes," his…her…their voice replied timidly. The soothing tone of Lily's voice calmed the bearer immediately, however. James soon found his bouncing nerves come to a gradual cease.

He was Lily Evans.

**A/N- Short Chapter, I'm aware. However if I didn't post it soon then it would never have gotten up. Just for the record, any sort of review motivates me. If you could please notify me of your consumption of my story I'll love you forever.**

**-Em**


	8. The Hour of Jily

**A/N: well, it's certainly been long enough. I sort of… well, actually, completely neglected this story. To be honest I'd forgotten the details of the plot. However, having a gotten a recent review (huge thanks to ****Deirdre4**** for inspiring me), I was motivated to a) reread my fic and b) update it. So, here it goes, several months too late.**

"Can I come in then?"

James identified a familiar suggestive tone in Sirius' voice. He could also swear that his comment had a second meaning. He smirked- and was awed by the Lily that met him in the mirror.

"Oh, James! I love you!" he mouthed mockingly adding a sarcastically sappy edge to his/her voice, and holding his hand over his heart dramatically while leaning into the mirror.

"I just can't resist you," he continued, no pronouncing the words aloud, "You're so handsome and charming- I've known it all along, really! Please, forgive me for being so mean- no, harsh… cruel and torturous to you in the past! I was under the imperious curse, all the while longing to jump into your arms! Which are very manly, for the record, so are your hands, actually. And you know what they say about those with big hands-"

James' monologue was cut short by the howling laughter of his so-called friend. Apparently he'd been so caught up in his reflection that Sirius had managed to sneak up behind him. It wasn't like it was really a big deal or anything, though…

"I'm never forgetting this moment. EVER!" Sirius managed to assure James in between chokes of hysteria. While his hilarity gradually came to a halt, the bathroom's local half-girl sensation slipped into a cubicle to change out of the uniform adorning his/her body into one that matched his/her current gender, and wasn't several sizes too large. Besides, James didn't want to give Lily the reputation of being a drag… king? But that got James thinking- by transforming his body was he partaking in some twisted magical version of cross-dressing? Maybe this was what it was like to get a sex-change.

All throughout his absent thoughts, James had been stripping out of his wrinkled uniform, not thinking of what the removal of his shirt would reveal. He was suddenly overwhelmed by a feeling of need to protect her body at all costs- he didn't want anybody, especially not Sirius, and not even himself to be taking advantage of Lily. This guarding nature sort of came as a surprise to James- he'd never really taken his obsession with her seriously… more as a routine. In fact, he couldn't recall a day during which he hadn't thought of her, spoke to her, or stalked her. She had become part of his life, whether he liked it or not. And he thought it was just a fickle crush? A game which he enjoyed playing, a little to much?

It was like a denial party.

As efficiently as possible, he/she shimmied into the neatly folded girls' uniform Remus had so kindly snatched from the laundry room. It was a little snug for his liking, but apparently this was what was expected of girls. Most annoying of all, possibly, was the damned bra. Although, there wasn't time to complain about it- enough time had been wasted already.

"Alright, I'm set." James called out to Sirius. His voice startled him, yet again. Defiantly, he placed forward a foot clad in oversized runners (bloody Remus hadn't been so sharp as to remember the vital component of clothing commonly referred to as footwear). To the naked eye he may have look like the regular old perfect prefect Lily Evans with an abnormal pair of scruffy clown shoes, but since James possessed a rather educated eye on the subject, he was so able to accurately analyze the person standing before him in the mirror, or rather, the person he was. He/she was determined. In this case, determined to solve the mystery of the missing map.

So mission impossible turned out to be an oxymoron.

No disguise could have prevented James from tip-toeing up the stairs; despite his flawless masquerade, even more effective then the invisibility cloak, he couldn't shake the feeling that he would be caught. Which was also odd, because he was a generally irresponsible, reckless, hasty being. Maybe this whole 'being-a-girl' thing had pushed responsibility on him. He hoped it was a temporary effect. Surely the whole 'walk a mile in their shoes' philosophy wouldn't apply to him- he didn't want to have to be empathetic and reasonable. Although really, he was still wearing his own shoes…

Yes, he should be safe enough.

Still not used to his new body, James tripped over the final step, collapsed through the open door, and ended up sprawled across the floor, which was thankfully plush and carpeted. He quickly recollected himself and jumped up from his eagle-spread position. He had roughly half an hour to raid the room; it was deserted thanks to Sirius' "distraction" down in the common room. Him shirtless (obviously because he was having his portrait done by peter who had of course found a new come love for painting) was enough of a distraction for your average seventh year girl.

The Lily/James... the Jily, began his investigation, not caring the slightest about being neat, or cleaning up after himself. He ripped clothing from trunks ruthlessly, scavenged beneath the beds, disemboweled the cabinets, and basically turned the entire room upside down. The unfortunate books and papers that had been abandoned were brutally devoured, Jily took no care as he "I solemnly swear I am up to No Good"ed them. Before long it looked as though a tornado had passed through the room. A slight wave of guilt flowed though, but it was almost immediately replaced with another emotion: panic. He could hear Sirius' overly exaggerated tone from the common room, his warning for the hour ending.

"Aren't you done yet, Peter? It's nearly been an **HOUR**!"

His cry was painfully obvious, and Jily certainly got the message. Little had been accomplished; the entire ploy had been useless. But although James would never be caught admitting it, the experience was worth it.

And as he frantically dashed (quite clumsily) back to the boys' lavatory (conveniently "closed for maintenance", obviously), James found himself smiling.

No, not smiling- beaming. Because this could very well be proof that Lily wasn't actually the culprit.

Little did he know that in a broom cupboard not far away, the map was tucked safely away in her bra, politely not inspected by Remus and Peter.

It was, very ironically, the very same sort that he had damned just an hour earlier.

And so very soon, the hour of Jily would merely be a memory for the marauders, and for Lily, the 'time she slipped and actually knocked herself out for an hour'.

Back into his regular uniform, still wearing the same sturdy shoes, James exited the bathroom, the same as he had entered. Only different.

**A/N: totally out of the loop… I hope it was decent.**

**R&R. I could definitely use the help.**


	9. Mischeif Managed?

**A/N: As requested by Freja Lercke-Falkenborg, I shall begin this chapter with a brief summary of previous key events in the story. Since I'm feeling lazy, it will be in point form.**

**In order of sequence:**

**-Lily has an obsession with obtaining random information on James, and convinces herself it's out of hatred **

**-James returns Lily's diary to her, promising he didn't read it**

**-Lily finds the marauders map, and keeps it, as an act of revenge**

**-James gets in a fight with Sirius for losing the map**

**-Lily and James have a civilized conversation (big wow, I know)**

**-Lily becomes addicted to the map, constantly monitoring James**

**-On the map, Lily sees the marauders during a full moon, and assumes certain things…**

**-James & the marauders make up**

**-Lily asks James about what he was doing in the shrieking shack, and he becomes suspicious**

**-James & the marauders plan to use polyjuice to turn into Lily and search the girls' dorm…**

**and that's where we left off last chapter. If I left something out… then sue me or something.**

Moral Standards. Never before had Lily Evans needed to question her own, being the saint of a person she was. Yet as she pouted on her bed, having a stare-off with the ever-questioned map, she found herself wondering how horrible a person she really was for keeping it from James.

Speaking of James… Lily drifted out of her thoughts and began scanning the crumpled page furiously, attempting to locate the disputed man of the hour. She slapped herself mentally, and discarded the map in disgust. It was simple: this had to end.

Defiantly, the redhead leaped from her bed and onto her two feet (comfortably set in a pair of shoes that were her size), now determined to do what had to be done. She took two paces towards the door, before she succumbed to her thoughts yet again. The image of James' hurt face as she admitted that she'd had the map all along crushed her. Perhaps she should just let it slip into his bag; he'd never know it was her. But no- she was not admitting to cowardice.

A plan slowly concocted in Lily's mind, and she smirked unconsciously. The map appeared to be rubbing off on her. Maybe it was forever cursed with essence of marauder. It must have, because in some twisted way, her plot to make James 'see that she was a truly good person', as she thought it, before returning the map seemed ingenious. If she charmed him with her great poise, how could he ever be mad at her for something as feeble as… well, intentionally abducting one of his most prized possessions?

Ah, all details, obviously.

--

"What can I say, James, you unquestionably made a hot chick!" Sirius exclaimed, taking no precaution to be subte, disregarding the fact that they were seated at a crowded breakfast table. He was given a few outlandish glances, mostly by first years, seeing as the majority of the population was immune to his outbursts.

James groaned; Remus choked on his bagel. Peter was too busy occupying himself with oozing as much syrup as possible into each individual square of his waffle to notice anything abnormal in what Sirius said.

"No, really I'm serious!" He laughed at his non-intentional pun blatantly. Apparently the fact that the joke had been made several hundred times too many didn't stop Sirius from being amused. The listeners ignored this outburst.

"It's really nice that you can share your sexual fantasies about James with us, however some of us," he gestured to his plate brimming with food, "are trying to eat."

Sirius tried to object, but he was interrupted by an unusually looking chipper Lily, whom was assumed to be the real thing, seeing as the transforming culprit was sitting at the very table. Unless of course it wasn't really James… no, it was too early in the morning for headaches.

"Good Morning!" she announced, both matter of factly and enthusiastically. The four boys stared at her as though trying to find the joke. So far as they new, April was far off. But still, when was the last time that Evans had willing approached, and for that matter spoken, to the four of them- particularly Sirius, and secondly James. He'd assumed the incident in transfiguration to be a fluke.

"Are you feeling okay?" Peter finally blurted out, rudely. A little bit of scrambled egg that was hanging off of his lip somersaulted through the air and splattered on the glasses of an unsuspected student sitting across the table from him.

"Of course she is! Sit down!" James quickly interjected, gesturing to the unoccupied seat to the right of him.

Lily cautiously evaluated the distance between said spot and Peter, eventually deciding it was safe enough. She didn't want to be a victim of one of his flying food assaults. Seeing as she was near-on starving, Lily didn't hesitate in loading her plate with her usual toast and jam. She violently jabbed the butter with a relatively sharp knife and began spreading it on her toast absent mindedly.

There was a silence, briefly interrupted by a burp contributed by Peter.

But generally, it was quiet, seeing as the marauders couldn't exactly continue their conversation about how attractive James looked in Lily's body, and Lily hadn't the foggiest as to what to say to a lot of people she knew little about. I mean, she wasn't about to bring up the topic of behaving obnoxiously… or was she?

Eventually, it was Sirius who broke the silence. "So, what brings you to this exciting end of the spectrum?" Sirius inquired charmingly, apparently still dwelling on his thoughts of James under the influence of polyjuice potion, and not affected by the long silence.

"Umm, well…" Lily stuttered, cursing mentally for not yet mastering the concept of developing lies on the spot, even though she'd had more then enough time to invent a reason. Surely, "I was just planning on being sociable with James so that he'd like me before I admit to taking your guys' map. You know the usual," wouldn't be appropriate. Rather conceitedly, Lily grinned at her own thoughts for she thought them to be amusing enough, not taking into consideration the fact that several people were staring at her intently waiting for a response.

Sirius took this as a sign of her daydreaming, and he immediately assumed it was of James, being off the jumping the guns variety. He elbowed James in the ribs encouragingly, and consequently James bumped into Lily, causing her to rely on the burly looking fifth year occupying the seat beside her to stop her fall. She recognized him as the cocky oaf who had once picked a fight with Sirius… who was then backed by the remainder of the trio. Wrestle-mania fifth year hadn't been too happy about that incident. And most likely, he wouldn't be too pleased about this one either, for it so happened that Lily was still bearing the semi-dangerous knife in her right hand. It jabbed into his arm with quite some force. How much, they might never no because his reaction was instant.

"AH YOU PETTY LITTLE BITCH! I'LL SQUASH YOU LIKE A BUG!"

Apparently he had quite the temper too.

Lily's mouth moved, though no sound came out.

"Wow look, raw meat!" Remus pointed off into the distance, and much to Lily's surprise, the stalky boy fell for it.

His head whipped around at the same moment that her feet were ripped out from beneath her. "Wha-?" managed to escape her mouth before being pulled along out of the great hall, led by James and his crew.

Or, more specifically, led by his hand. This thought made Lily's heart race- she told it off fiercely. It was being silly.

She was further dragged out of the great hall, and into the grounds. The combination of adrenaline and her hand had made her very giddy, and she found herself laughing along as the stampede was brought to a halt. It was probably freezing outside- there was snow on the ground despite the fact that it hadn't fallen in over a week, but Lily didn't notice. She was having fun, with the last few people on earth she'd expect. And having fun by doing things which we probably bending a school rule. After all, even accidental violence wasn't encourage.

It amazed her that she could enjoy herself with people she'd grown so accustomed to hating (well, minus Remus, she'd always found him quite likable, due to their shared fondness of books). Also, she couldn't remember the last time she'd spoken to them; she'd remembered them as generally selfish, annoying boys. If they'd pulled her out of that situation they couldn't be half bad.

"Nice aim, Evans." Sirius congratulated her, "I've been meaning to stab that bloke for quite sometime."

Lily found herself blushing, but it went unnoticed due to the fact that her cheeks were already flushed.

Speaking of embarrassment, it dawned upon her then that her hand was still gripping James'. It felt all nice and warm but honestly she didn't know this guy! Hated him, really! The only words they'd exchanged were those of detestation! With that, she removed her hand from his, not totally forcefully, but still surely.

Lily could have sworn that she'd seen a flicker of emotion across his face, but when he spoke next he sounded perfectly normal. Not that she thought he was perfect or anything.

"So then, Evans, when was it that you hopped on the mischief bandwagon?" he inquired rather proudly, as though he were introducing the ocean to a museum fish.

"Well, I didn't think that I actually had," she replied mockingly, attempting to sound dignified and put together, simultaneously failing at it. She ended up sounding more dumbfounded then anything.

"Ha! Amateurs. They humour me." Sirius cried, feigning a laugh and slapping his leg teasingly.

"I am no amateur," Lily defended, though she knew that somebody might call her one if they were being gratifying. Plus she'd just claimed that she had nothing to do with trouble… but then, contradiction was a minor obstacle.

"Oh really?" the marauders inquired in unison, their curiosity activated, more because they sensed an easy victory then because they believed her.

"So then, what kind of experience do you have, Ms. Evans?"

Had it not been stolen, Lily could have mentioned the map. Then again, if it hadn't been stolen it wouldn't have been considered that great a feat. Admitting defeat, she sighed.

"Alright, alright. I have no experience whatsoever."

"Well something has to be done about that now, doesn't it?"

Lily really, really didn't like the look on James' face as he made his proposal. Nuisance was written all over it, even more evident then if somebody had written it across his forehead in permanent marker.

**A/N: apologies if Lily's behavior is frustrating. (: It's intentional, so I guess if it's annoying then it's doing the right job. And there WILL be an ending, and it WILL involve the repossession of the map. Read and Review and I'll Love you. (:**

**And also, I sort of hated this chapter, but I was too lazy to rewrite it so instead I went through and edited it. If there are any bizarre wordings, that's why- I apologise.**


	10. Mischeif Managed

**A/N: Soooooooooo, I was totally forgetting about this story again, and then I found this file saved on my computer so I decided to finish writing it. Of course, first I had to read the rest of it again, and I was really glad I did because I couldn't stop laughing. Then I realized it was probably because I share the same sense of humour with myself. Anyways, I think this chapter is okay. There's only a few more chapters left (in my whole plan, which is frequently changing) so I'm trying to make them worth while. My next task is to fix the first few chapters because they seriously suck. Seriously.**

"Alright, so do you think you've got everything down pat?"

Lily stared blankly at the array of relatively familiar objects scattered in disarray throughout the Charms room. There were a few Zonko's contraption, and a couple of everyday household objects, but the majority of the pranking materials (or 'utensils assisting in the guidance of spreading vital propaganda via an honest method, simply not fully accepted by society' as James put it) were of the DIY variety. Her mentor didn't seem very concerned with the legal aspect of the dodgier equipment; Lily found herself feeling overly anxious.

The purpose of the exposal of the Marauder's valuable, semi-secretive materials was to aid Lily in learning the ways of the mischief maker. So far the lesson had consisted of James summarizing the basic functions of each machine. The presentation as a whole had gone over Lily's head. She tried her best to seem unimpressed by the affair, but she was overwhelmed by the entire concept, having been a worshipper of rules and structure up until… well actually, she still really was. However, she couldn't help but feel blasphemous as a Head Girl. The subject was intriguing though, so Lily didn't object.

It turned out that James had been the only one available to tutor Lily in the area, despite there being several other experienced patrons. The three of them had conveniently all been diagnosed with the same very contagious virus, of course meaning that they were entirely incapable of accompanying James and Lily. So it was just the two of them, a one-on-one seminar.

Judging by the vacant expression stubbornly residing on Lily's face, James gathered that plan A) wouldn't be a success. It caused him no discontent though, because he much preferred plan B).

"You know, I've got a much better idea." He stated, not waiting for a response.

"We go back to the common room and study for the Defense Against the Dark Arts exam!" Lily interjected, though she didn't even bother to hope that she'd be given up on.

"While that seems like a… perfectly acceptable way to spend an evening, I was thinking something more along the lines of a practical application."

Lily felt an awful sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach; she really, really, really didn't like the idea. Really. But then she remembered that she was trying to woo James with her civility and likeability. And considering the fact that he spent most of his days pulling pranks and doing other prank-like things, she reasoned that it would be a good first step to show him that she wasn't completely incompetent when it came to whoopee cushions.

It crossed her mind that she could also learn to play quidditch to impress him, but the memory of the last time she attempted to fly quickly reminded her that it wasn't a wise idea. Unless of course she was trying to go for the pity tactic. She was sure that if she was on her death bed, suffering from many quidditch-related injuries, and she admitted that she'd stolen the map, James wouldn't be too mad. But what if he hated her because of it and she never got a chance to explain herself? What if she died right there on the spot and his only memory of her was of the Lily-bitch that stole the Marauders Map? What if nobody even went to her funeral because James told everybody about what she'd done? What if she never got to tell him the way she really felt-

Wait, what was she talking about? This was a theoretical situation. Besides, James already knew how she felt. General hated. Well, that wasn't true, she didn't hate him. She knew that, so he must. But what if he didn't?

"You know, James, I don't actually hate you."

"That's… nice. For the record, neither do I."

Lily blushed furiously, realizing how bizarre her comment must have sounded to anybody either than her. In a rush, she decided it would be a good idea to explain herself.

"See, I was just thinking about if I died, you know, from quidditch-related injuries. And I wanted people to come to my funeral so…" she trailed off, not sure how to continue without mentioning the map's play in this. Come to think of it, she wasn't sure how to continue without sounding like a lunatic.

"Don't worry, Lily, I'll come to your funeral no matter what," James comforted her, "even if you do sound a little bit insane currently. No offense or anything just-"

He was interrupted by something that shocked him very much. It seemed that Lily was laughing. And sure, he'd seen the occasional twitter out of her before, and sometimes even a chuckle. Or a snort. Once, last year in potions, he remembered one of her friends whispered something to her, and she laughed rather freely. But this was different because he wasn't a third-party observer. He had made her laugh. James Potter made Lily Evans laugh. So thrilled with the fact that Lily was laughing with him, James joined in.

Once the peals had subsided, James asked "So, you up for some pranking now?"

Lily looked a little uneasy, but the lightened mood had loosened her up and she found that her pangs of anxiety had shifted more to pangs of anxiousness. She commonly felt this before exam. Sort of a pre-exam rush. Lily doubted it was normal, but if tests thrilled her, so be it.

"Definitely."

---

"Okay, so I figure it's best to start of with the basics. It's pretty much mandatory for everybody to be able to chuck a dungbomb. Do you have a decent arm?"

"Well, when I was six I played on a softball team."

James looked puzzled so Lily elaborated, "It's a muggle sport. Honestly, I was rubbish at it."

"Well obviously, all muggle sports are rubbish." Realizing that his comment might come across as offensive to Lily he quickly corrected himself, "Not that muggles are bad or anything. Just, you know, I'm really a quidditch fan so, any other sport just doesn't really cut it. And you know, there's no flying."

"Actually, there is plenty of flying in softball." Lily corrected him very seriously. He fell for it.

"Really? Fancy you could teach me this squishball some time?"

"Softball. And I'm only kidding."

"Oh," James seemed genuinely disappointed.

"Anyways… on with dungbombs," Lily couldn't believe that she was bringing up the topic of dungbombs. To think of all of the times she had confiscated them from her classmates...

"Right, so, pretty much you've just got to throw it as hard as you can. The point is to make it far away from you, if not then…well, it's pretty stupid to throw a dungbomb at yourself is all I can say. You're probably thinking 'why bring me to the staircases?'."

"No, actually, it seems pretty logical. You can drop it. No aim or strength required."

"Well, actually, the Hufflepuff corridor is just around the corner so I was planning on-"

"What! No! That's terrible. I have friends in Hufflepuff! Throwing a dungbomb at someone is so mean. No."

"Ah, but does a falling tree make a noise if there is no one there to hear it? Does a dungbomb stink if there is no one there to smell it? The whole point of pranking, you see, is to inconvenience someone else. It's rather harmless, really. All in good fun. You can't say no unless you've tried it."

"Well… if you insist."

"I do."

This was wreckless Lily Evans. She stole maps. She stabbed people. Hell, sometimes she even talked to James Potter. And now she would throw a dungbomb.

Assuming the closest door was the Hufflepuff common room (Lily had never actually ventured into their common room herself), she chucked the dungbomb with all her might directly at the door. Apparently she had used enough force because the dungbomb exploded on the spot.

And ew.

James looked at her as though she was crazy, "Are you mad? I said just around the corner! And I didn't even show you proper dungbomb throwing technique. And well, sorry to break it to you but I thought you should know that one would normally open the door before launching."

Okay, so Lily was a failure. What else was new? Well, the putrid odour that was now overwhelming her for one thing.

"Let's go."

"Best idea of the whole night, hands down."

---

Once the two trouble makers had collected all of the 'utensils assisting in the guidance of spreading vital propaganda via an honest method, simply not fully accepted by society' they returned to the common room. It relieved Lily that it smelt of cinnamon, burnt parchment, and fruity perfume, nothing more.

"Well, I hate to admit it but that was actually kind of fun." She wasn't just saying that because she was trying to be charming, she really did have a good time in a weird way.

"Seriously?" James inquired eagerly, his eyes lighting up at the thought.

"Yeah, seriously,"

"Well… that's seriously awesome."

Lily giggled despite herself. She had never been a giggly person. What was coming over her?

"So, uh, if you want to, you know, prank again some time, the offer's always open." James sounded sincere and sheepish when he asked her this, and Lily found a blush invading her face.

"You'd be willing to risk another backfire?" Lily joked, feigning shock.

"Any day. I'm having second thoughts about the whole dungbomb thing though…"

"Oh, come on, I'm sure everybody makes that mistake once in a while."

James shook his head solemnly, "not even Peter."

Lily scoffed at this, but then beamed openly. She couldn't help herself.

"Well, I've got to hand it to you, I never thought you had it in you." He affectionately tapped her on the shoulder with his wand, "Mischief Managed, Lily."

Lily took pride in the fact that he had just complemented her on her mischief skills. It was an honour, in her opinion. With that James said a quick "G'night," and strolled up the stairs to the boys' dorm, dragging the overstuffed bag containing his 'utensils assisting in the guidance of spreading vital propaganda via an honest method, simply not fully accepted by society' behind him.

Lily herself leapt up the stairs two at a time, for she found that she had a huge amount of energy and nothing to do with herself. It was late, but she was nothing but awake. Her heart was pounding wildly, and had she been vain enough to check over her appearance in the mirror, she would have noticed how fierce her eyes were. Her dorm mates were all asleep so, with lack of anything to do with herself, Lily relied on routine. She flopped down on her bed soundlessly and reached into the breast pocked of her cloak where she knew the Marauder's Map lay.

Unfolding the crinkled parchment gently Lily smirked in memory of her night with James. When he'd said goodbye he'd tapped her with his wand. Did that count as him touching her? Because really the wand wasn't him, but it belonged to him...

Lily decided it didn't matter and she shifted her concentration to the map that lay before her. Or rather, the blank piece of parchment. Frantically turning the piece of decrepit paper over fretfully, Lily realized that it was in fact not the marauder's map.

She searched every nook and cranny of her robes, her shoes, her socks, her trunk, her books, and her bag. The map was nowhere to be found. And Lily was one hundred percent certain that she had placed it in that very pocket of her robes. She stared again at the beige non-map in front of her. It was the map, it had to be, it was the only logical explanation. She didn't lose it, she couldn't have.

But then what? Had she broken the Marauder's Map? She didn't even know if it was possible, in fact she didn't really know anything about it at all. This was her punishment for not returning it in the first place, she knew it. Now if she ever admitted to James that she'd taken it he wouldn't even have the consolation of getting it back. It was official: James Potter was no longer attending Lily's funeral.

Lily looked once more at the map, certain that her eyes must be playing tricks on her. Or perhaps the map was playing tricks on her- it was working; she could see several dots forming on the page.

It took her a moment to realize they were her own tears.

**A/N: Now it's my turn to say review. (: I'll give lovely responses and possibly finish this thing faster. **


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